




Most people will remember the Curzon in its later years, an established gay bar with two main floors and a dance area towards the rear. It also earnt itself a reputation as ‘seedy’, with soft porn on the TV as you entered and plenty of opportunities to ‘cop off’. However, Pat’s memories share with us a rarer glimpse of this place, uncovering the early stages of the Curzon as a gay bar. It was acquired by Tony Sadie, the owner of Bar Royal on Wood Street in the late 1980’s. She was asked to manage the bar for Sadie - a few years before it was renovated under new ownership which saw the opening up of the lower floor and the use of the first floor. Pat remembers it as a small room with a blue velvet seating area, a central U-shaped bar and blue patterned wallpaper. Above the seating area, a ‘gentlemen’ sign hung, salvaged from the demolition of the ‘Victoria Street Cottage’.